Shapet continued to speak slowly, his tone and speed giving off a sense of controlled recitation:
"I could have slandered you to calm my anger, but I have more important things to do right now. That's the difference between you and me. Let's save you and me some time and end this farce as soon as possible. Put down your weapon and let the guards around me take you to the dungeon to await trial. Then we will set out to quell the chaos. Your lies are meaningless and will be exposed at the slightest provocation."
"That's right! This is a lie that will be exposed with just one poke, and it's also the easiest lie to verify!"
Caleb Manji was in a state of abnormal excitement at this moment, his eyes were wide open and almost popped out of their sockets.
"You haven't touched silverware since your stroke, whether it's knives, forks, plates, or candlesticks. You explained that you were thrifty, but you still wear a gold necklace! If you weren't a shapeshifter, would you dare to--"
Caleb Manji's roar was suddenly stuck in his throat. He opened his eyes wide and stretched his neck, as if he had seen something incredible.
He suddenly realized what was wrong with Chapelle today.
Today, the Eternal Fire's security officer, Chapelle, suddenly discarded his gold necklace and replaced it with a thick silver chain that looked like a shackle.
At this moment, he held up his necklace with both hands without any scruples, and said in a cold tone: "I used to think that gold was the color closest to fire, so I liked it. But a few days ago, I donated the gold necklace to help the citizens affected by the disaster; if the gangs today cause too much damage, I will also donate this silver chain."
As he spoke, he raised the necklace in his hand: "Is this the 'silver' you mentioned?"
Chapelle looked around at Caleb Manji and his men whose faces had changed drastically, and said slowly: "I have always known that you have doubts and dissatisfaction with my policies, but I didn't expect that your dissatisfaction has accumulated to the point where it can be incited by such a lie that can be easily exposed. You miss the feeling of being high and mighty, right? You miss the days when you could wear gold and silver just by praying and chanting every day, and you are even so easily deceived by it-"
Under the gaze of the crowd, the security officer of the Eternal Flame shouted loudly: "Believers, where is your faith!"
Caleb Manji stared at the silver chain around Chapelle's neck. He didn't even need to look back to know that the troops he had gathered with great difficulty were now in a state of morale, but he couldn't figure it out.
"No! This is the prop you prepared yourself. It's just a silver thing, not real silver!"
Before Caleb Manji finished his words, he suddenly heard the sound of an arrow cutting through the air.
Everyone present was unable to react before they saw Chapelle screaming and falling to the ground.
"Mr. Chapelle!"
The guards surrounding Chapelle were very anxious and rushed forward to check on the security officer.
With a muffled groan, the arrow was pulled out.
"It is an arrow with a silver tip! How dare you prepare such a weapon to attack Monsieur Chapelle!"
Caleb Manji looked around at his men in panic. He did prepare silver weapons, but he should never take action at this time!
"etc……"
Caleb Manji still wants to stop all this, he also wants to continue to verify Chapelle's true identity.
But in his team, a guard suddenly began to mutter.
"After all this chatter, now we can finally fight."
Then, everyone saw a man rushing out from behind Caleb Manji, holding the sword high in his hand and rushing towards Chapelle.
"For the Eternal Flame, for the Temple Guards, for Lord Caleb Manji!"
The guard charged with complete disregard for his own safety, and was stabbed through the body by three swords at once, but he also buried the weapon in his hand into the neck of another man.
Caleb Manji's eyes widened.
Behind him, another person shuddered suddenly, then revealed an interested expression.
"It's really interesting..."
On the roof, Kaiyan slowly retracted the crossbow in his hand.
He gripped the steel sword behind him, his eyes the same color as the blood splattered in the field. He finally suppressed his urge to join the battle and murmured softly to himself:
"Fight, fight, the more intense the better... No matter which side you are on, the more deaths the better, that way Lann's power will become more important..."
Where Triss was standing, the air was fluctuating unsteadily; that was the chaotic energy at work.
If there was a warlock present, he would be able to discover that Chapelle had the same magical fluctuations as Triss at the moment.
Chapelle's shapeshifting transformation had long been lifted, after all, he had been wearing a large silver chain all day. His current shape change was the result of Triss's chaotic energy kneading him like plasticine, and then applying a layer of illusion to cover it up.
The illusions performed by an experienced sorcerer were far more than just visual deception. For example, Philippa was able to use illusions to create phantom food at the banquet, deceiving the perception of other sorcerers and letting them feast on the food without knowing the truth.
In her words: This way, I can satisfy my appetite without having to worry about body control.
Although Triss's power at the moment is not as strong as Philippa's, it is enough to deceive these mortal guards.
Chapelle, who was hit by the silver arrow, pushed away the guards who were supporting him to prevent them from touching him again. Then he tore off his silver chain and threw it in the direction of Caleb Manji as if to vent his anger.
"Don't worry about me, just take down these traitors who are blinded by power and interests!"
Chapelle's men had already been engaged in close combat with the enemy, and upon hearing Chapelle's order, the guards who had been surrounding him for protection also drew their swords and charged forward to join the battle with fanatical expressions.
"For the Eternal Fire! Take down the traitor!"
Chapelle pressed the wound on his shoulder and slowly retreated to the back, his body twisting under the illusion.
The slightly deliberate cold expression on his face immediately became natural.
Triss on the roof also breathed a sigh of relief and slowly withdrew her hands.
Since then, Chapelle's position in the Eternal Flame has been completely consolidated.
In front, the blood of the followers of Chapelle's sect and the temple guards led by Caleb Manji was splattered everywhere.
Chapelle's men were filled with rage and high morale, while the temple guards were panic-stricken and were defeated.
Whenever a temple guard wanted to lay down his weapon and surrender on the spot, one of Caleb Manji's companions would rush forward and greet the sword with his chest, yelling "For the Eternal Fire" madly, inspiring everyone's morale and giving them the illusion that they could win immediately.
Whenever the followers of Chapelle's sect wanted to let go of the temple guards kneeling on the ground, they would tremble, shout "For the Eternal Fire", and strike with their swords, not letting anyone go, and strengthening their determination to wipe out the enemy.
Sword after sword was shattered, armor after armor painted with the fire emblem was torn apart. Even though the flames were added with special essences and fuel, they were still not as red as the blood, nor could they cover up the fishy smell. In an instant, the sacred Eternal Fire Headquarters turned into a hell on earth.
Chapelle sighed deeply. In his mind, the kindness from the shapeshifter and the decisiveness from the Eternal Fire Security Officer began to conflict violently, as if there were two people biting each other inside his body, giving him an unbearable headache.
Finally, he couldn't bear it anymore.
“Triss, that’s enough, stop it. If you continue like this, the Eternal Flame will be without the armed forces to maintain order…”
The subtle sound, like a whisper, was transmitted accurately into the sorceress's ears through the transmission of chaos magic.
The sorceress looked at the cat-faction witcher.
Kaiyan shrugged. "We have no say in when this level of chaos will end."
Triss frowned: "Lan should have given you a method."
Although they had not been together for a long time, the cat-faction witcher seemed to have established a deep bond with Lann. As soon as Triss said the name, Kaiyan made a gesture as if in surrender.
"Okay, okay..."
Kaiyan took out a small bag of ashes from his pocket and began to mutter to himself.
Then, the bag of bone powder floated in the air without wind, outlining the shape of a person.
On the battlefield, a temple guard's body suddenly shook, his eyes blank. He seemed to want to shout, but the next second his head was chopped off by an axe.
"What are you doing, you red-eyed guy? I'm having a lot of fun!"
Vlodimir shouted in dissatisfaction, and then his sight suddenly fell on Triss not far away.
He immediately put on another face:
"Oh, I don't know what to call this lady. I want to compliment your hair by saying it looks like delicious strawberries, but the truth is, it's hotter and more provocative than the eternal flame~"
Triss snorted.
He raised his hand, and chaotic energy immediately enveloped the ghost's body, rendering him unable to move or speak.
“好了，好了，特莉丝女士。消消气，跟死人较什么劲。”凯亚恩转头看向弗洛迪米，“我和你哥哥的约定是让你享受重生的一天，我看你也挺乐在其中，那么是不是该要给我想要的东西了？”
猎魔人取出一张羊皮纸：“我需要一个凭证，向你的哥哥证明我已经完成了他的委托。”
混沌能量撤去，鬼魂之身的弗洛迪米颇为忌惮地看了特莉丝一眼，嘴里嘀咕着什么“女术士”。
他伸手想要抓笔，伸手却捞了个空。
灵体是抓不住的实物的。
弗洛迪米嬉皮笑脸地抬起头，却马上又听到特莉丝在念念有词。然后他身上除了右手的身体都变得一片透明而模糊，让他身体显形的骨灰全部都汇聚到他的手上。
凯亚恩再递笔过去，这回弗洛迪米抓住了。
虽然此时已经看不到弗洛迪米的脸，但是从那根笔的抖动就能看出他心有不甘。
书面证明很快完成，弗洛迪米闷闷不乐地说道：“我能再回去狂欢了吧？”
凯亚恩点点头，说道：“可以是可以，但是你没发现他们的争斗快要结束了吗？”
弗洛迪米理所当然地说道：“他们都已经打了这么久了，也该停下来了，我可不想错过故事的结尾。”
凯亚恩压低了声音，循循善诱：“不，我的意思是：你已经当了这么久的士兵，为什么不试试去附身他们的头领——那个迦勒·曼吉呢？只要成为了领袖，战斗什么时候结束不是就你说了算了？而且换个身份去享受战斗，也能够体会到别样的乐趣。”
弗洛迪米的眼睛亮了起来。
“我现在过去，你不会再召唤我回来了吧？证明已经给你了，我们之间的契约已经结束了？”
凯亚恩点点头：“当然，骨灰已经用完了，我甚至没有办法把你再送回去了，你想要在这里待多久都可以。”
弗洛迪米满意地笑了。
附身迦勒·曼吉是个好主意，但是临走之前，他却突然想到了什么，回头不怀好意地朝着凯亚恩说道：
“猎魔人，我和你相处得很愉快。其实说实话，我最想附身的还是你，毕竟跟这些大头兵比起来，还是一个身手矫健还会法术的变异人更有意思。如果下次你还有求于我的话，可以把这个当做筹码来跟我谈～”
弗洛迪米大笑着离去。
凯亚恩的手抖了起来，上面青筋暴起。
特莉丝看着情绪不稳的猫派猎魔人，礼貌地询问道：“你还好吧？”
“没事，没事，特莉丝女士，我还好。”凯亚恩面无表情，“跟死人较什么劲。”
……
迦勒·曼吉晕头转向地环顾四周。混乱之中他不知道被谁砍了一刀，好在甲厚，也不在要害，所以还有行动的能力。
事情的发展到现在已经完全出乎了他的预料了。
神殿守卫可以说是永恒之火最精锐的武装力量——这个精锐指得是装备和受训程度。
由于迦勒·曼吉是团长，所以他对于神殿守卫的掌控力很强。
而沙佩勒掌握在手里的直属部队则是诸如诺维格瑞的城卫、巡察等常规武装。如果算正面冲突的话，很难抗衡神殿守卫。
但是在宗教内战，这个战斗力的高低最终还是要看信仰的，信仰越坚定越能打。更不要说神殿守卫中，也不乏有信仰的年轻人是仰慕沙佩勒的。
迦勒·曼吉原本想要用对沙佩勒的变形怪指控来成为压倒骆驼的最后一根稻草，赢得胜利。甚至以此作为功绩成为自己以后成为永恒之火掌权人的筹码。
但是现在看来一切都已经不可能了。
肉眼可见的，那些被自己煽动起来的神殿守卫已经迷茫了，年轻的守卫在看到沙佩勒洗脱变形怪嫌疑的时候就已经不知道自己为何而战了。
“诸位！”迦勒·曼吉垂死挣扎，“想想沙佩勒这段时间的所作所为，他一定用了什么邪恶的方法，或许是我们不知道的什么魔法或者炼金术，我们不能让永恒之火在这种人手里沉沦！”
团长大声疾呼，但是响应者寥寥。
明白大势已去，迦勒·曼吉用力地挥舞长剑，做出奋战的样子企图带动最后一点士气。同时整个人又且战且退，很快就以勇猛的姿态浑身鲜血地退回了队伍的最后方。
“卡曼！”他大喊自己早就已经准备开溜的副手，“点齐剩下的人手，召集起来，我们准备……”
迦勒·曼吉话说一半，整个人猛然一抖，眼神顿时就变了个人。
“团长？”
副手疑惑地上前，却听到迦勒·曼吉高喊：“神殿守卫们，誓死不屈，我将以身作则践行永恒之火的誓言！”
随后，他又从队伍的最后方冲到了第一线，一路上甚至连踹带撞地冲开了不少裹足不前的守卫，一副死战不退的壮烈模样。
副手目瞪口呆。深知自己团长平时个性的他不能够理解眼前的一幕。
所有沙佩勒一方的信徒紧咬牙关，严阵以待着神殿守卫们的临死反扑。
只有沙佩勒暗中松了一口。
一枚【月之尘】炸弹不知道从哪里跑了过来，打着旋迎头砸在了迦勒·曼吉的脑袋上，紧接着无形的混沌能量开始作用在这个神殿守卫头子的身上。
还没等场中混乱的众人反应过来那里来的炼金炸弹，银色的雾气就在迦勒·曼吉的身遭爆发。
在众人惊骇的视线中，迦勒·曼吉的口中突然开始发出另外一个人的惨叫，随后一个人影在他的身后开始若隐若现地翻涌。
那凄厉的哀嚎、那扭曲的肢体，让在场的每个人都不寒而栗。
无论是哪一边的战士，这个时候都停下了动作，一个可怕的猜想在他们的脑海中浮现。
只见人群后面，因为中了一箭而一直神隐的沙佩勒突然站了出来。
“恶灵附体！迦勒·曼吉被恶灵附体了！”
被【月之尘】和混沌能量双重控制的弗洛迪米在痛苦之中翻腾，他狰狞的面庞在水银雾气的显形下毫无保留地呈现在在场所有人的面前。
迦勒·曼吉也随之发出宛若野兽的痛苦嚎叫。
“不久前，我就得知了神殿岛下方除了那只巨蟾蜍之外，还有一头恶灵在游**。所以我重金求了另外一名猎魔人来为我解决这个问题。却没有想到竟然在这个时候发现了他。”
沙佩勒语气冰冷，眼中却饱含着怒火，痛心疾首地看着眼前这位永恒之火的“同僚”。
“恶灵已经杀了迦勒·曼吉，并且将其附体。它蛊惑了这起永恒之火内部的暴动，我也是现在才理解了一切。诸位，你们难道不觉得今天发生的一切都太过于荒谬了吗？神殿守卫的团长指责我是变形怪，而永恒之火的信徒们又都互相失去理智地互相砍杀，这根本不是你们会做出来的事情。”
“这一切都是恶灵的错！”
沙佩勒直接给事情定了性，着重强调迦勒·曼吉已经死去，眼前的就只是恶灵而已。
放眼望去，他也能够看到迦勒·曼吉阵营里面的煽动者、小头领都已经死去，剩下的都是年轻的神殿守卫，他们有的只是单纯地被团长蛊惑，没有再杀死他们的必要了。
而满身鲜血的两拨人茫然地看着昨天还称兄道弟、刚刚又刀剑相向、如今又止住刀戈的教友，眼神开始变得清澈。
他们逐渐理解了一切。
“恶灵……没错，都是恶灵的错！恶灵蛊惑了我们，是恶灵在恶意中伤沙佩勒先生！”
“都是恶灵，令人发指的恶灵！”
“不，不对，这不是恶灵。是伪神，是异教徒的伪神，他们想要颠覆永恒之火！”
“不要被它吓到，为了永恒之火！”
“为了永恒之火！！！”
那一瞬间，有数不清的刀剑同时穿透了那片银雾，其中以神殿守卫们最为凶狠，最为疯狂。他们不顾一切地挥舞刀剑，甚至还对身边的同伴有了误伤。
但是这个时候没人在意这个。
哪怕有【月之尘】的作用让弗洛迪米显形，但是他毕竟是妖灵。穿透他身体的既非银剑，也没有猎魔人的特质剑油，所以给他造成的伤害有限，他马上就逃走了。
但是迦勒·曼吉不一样。
他在第一个瞬间就死去了，再怎么坚固的铠甲也挡不住此时信徒们的武器。围观的特莉丝甚至相信那些双眼发红的守卫能够用牙齿把迦勒·曼吉身上的甲胄啃下来。
凯亚恩默默地给自己的武器涂抹【鬼灵油】，在场中银雾彻底消散之后不久，他闭着眼睛朝着四周感知了一番，立刻选定了一个方向离去。
特莉丝没有问猫派猎魔人去了哪里。
神殿之上，斗争渐渐平息了下来。神殿守卫们愣愣地看着已经变得到处都是的“迦勒·曼吉”，一时无语。
With a "clang", I don't know who was the first to drop the weapon in his hand, followed by a dull shock caused by a series of kneeling on the ground. They surrendered.
Chapelle held the wound on his shoulder, shook his head, pushed away the support of the people around him, and walked step by step to a young guard.
"Mr. Chapelle..."
The young man looked up, his hands were shaking, not because of fear, but because of regret.
"You killed the evil spirits and guarded the eternal fire."
The young guard seemed to be affirmed, and his eyes lit up.
"But you have committed a crime after all, even if you were bewitched by an evil spirit. So you must atone for your sins."
The young man bent down and said, "I will use the rest of my life to make up for the sin I committed today."
Everyone in Caleb Manji's camp imitated the young man's actions and confessed their sins to Chapelle. Chapelle's followers came forward one by one, tied them up, and prepared to take them to the dungeon.
The turmoil on Temple Island has calmed down.
Chapelle originally thought so.
"Monsieur Chapelle, look over there..."
His adjutant suddenly exclaimed.
Temple Island was located at a very high altitude, and from their direction they could see half of Novigrad. Chapelle turned his gaze to the direction pointed by the adjutant, and the towering fire and billowing smoke were reflected in his eyes.
There were countless figures running away, each of them no bigger than an ant, chasing and killing each other.
Soon Chapelle saw a large number of figures being caught up by the people behind them, and then they stopped where they were.
"That direction... is it Novigrad Square?" Chapelle muttered to himself, "It's a riot started by the gangs... but weren't these resolved in advance?"